TNF and infection: To elucidate how the overexpression of TLR4 influences pathway activation, we examined the production of TNFα (tumour necrosis factor α) and IL-6 (interleukin 6) by the TIRAP-MyD88-dependent pathway and the production of IFN-β (interferon β) by the TRAM-TRIF-dependent pathway by qRT-PCR during the early stages of infection.